Two men killed when big rig hits cliffside, bursts into flames

EL CENTRO – Two men were killed in a fiery crash in Imperial County Monday night when the big rig they were in crashed into a steep rock wall off Interstate 8.

The driver of the truck, which was carrying frozen foods, was heading east on I-8 west of state Route 98 when it crashed about 9 p.m., California Highway Patrol Officer Pablo Torrez said.

Witnesses said the truck was heading down a steep decline about 55 miles per hour when it drifted to the right shoulder and slammed into the mountainside, Torrez said. The cab of the Freightliner then burst into flames, Torrez said.

Firefighters recovered the body of the driver, a 69-year-old man from Lakehead and his passenger, a 43-year-old from Palmdale. The men's names have not been released.

The eastbound lanes of I-8 were closed from the Border Patrol checkpoint in Jacumba to the the scene of the crash until about 11 p.m.